Belgium Witnesses One of the Worst Fires in Its History

A massive fire has consumed approximately 3,000 hectares (one hectare equals 10,000 square meters, or about 30 square kilometers) in a nature reserve in eastern Belgium, according to authorities on Sunday morning.

The Walloon authorities stated in a press release: “Conditions remain complex. Although wind intensity has subsided, the wind direction has shifted several times during the night.”

Rescue teams worked through the night to combat the blaze, hoping that reinforcements from outside and lower temperatures would help bring the fire under control.

The network reported that the fire in the Hautes Fagnes nature reserve changed direction several times during the night due to shifting winds.

The fire, which is the largest forest fire ever recorded in the country, had consumed around 2,700 hectares of land by Saturday evening, according to local authorities.

Additional aid is expected to arrive on Sunday, after Belgium requested assistance from other European Union member states. Local authorities said that firefighters from Germany and Luxembourg have already been deployed to the fire site, along with two helicopters from the Netherlands.

Temperatures in Belgium dropped during the night following a heatwave earlier this week.